Recently, solar energy becomes more and more popular to convert sunlight into other types of energy such as electricity and heat. Solar power is advantageous in situations where other power sources are unavailable because solar energy can be collected during the daytime via solar panels and the collected energy can be used to power other devices during the nighttime. In some situations, the solar cell can directly power a device, but it is more common to have the solar cell charged and maintain an energy storage device.
An LED (light-emitting diodes) lamp is a type of solid-state lighting that utilizes LEDs as a source of illumination. Recently, the use of LEDs for various lighting purposes has increased because LEDs have a very long lifespan (at least 100,000 hours), compared with common incandescent and fluorescent sources. Also, with newer doping techniques, LEDs are becoming increasingly efficient, and colored LED sources currently available may consume an order of magnitude less power than incandescent bulbs of equivalent light output. Because of these advantages, LEDs have been widely used in solar lighting devices in recent years.
Solar lighting devices can be disposed at some outdoor gears. U.S. Pat. No. 6,837,255 to Bunch et al. discloses an illuminated umbrella assembly having self-contained and protected lights. More specifically, Bunch et al. discloses an illuminated umbrella assembly that has a removable lighting protected from damage by being internally placed within the umbrella assembly. Also, the lighting is powered by solar panels disposed on the umbrella, as shown in FIG. 1. Even though the lighting fixture of the illuminated umbrella assembly is movable, the movement thereof is very limited because the solar panel is fixed on the umbrella assembly, and the connection and wiring between the solar panel and lighting fixture are fixed on the umbrella assembly. In other words, the lighting fixture and the solar panel are not portable and cannot be easily transferred to other outdoor gears such as other outdoor umbrellas or tents.
U.S. Pub. No. 2005/0254228 to Li discloses an outdoors umbrella which incorporates with a solar lighting system for providing illumination utilizing solar energy as an external energy source, as shown in FIG. 2. Thus, the solar lighting system is environmentally friendly and economical to operate. Also, the electrical operation of the solar light system is substantially unaffected by the folding and unfolding operation of the outdoors umbrella so that it is capable of fully operating while the outdoors umbrella is partially or inclinedly erected. However, the solar panels are fixed on the umbrella as well as the lighting fixtures, so the lighting fixture and the solar panel are not even portable and cannot be easily transferred to other outdoor gears such as tents.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,497,583 to Ma also discloses a light provider for an umbrella and stand assembly. More specifically, Ma discloses a portable, multi-purpose lighting device which can be easily fastened to, as well as un-fastened from, a pole-like object such as an umbrella stand, and without the trouble of having an electrical cord hanging undesirably from it. A plurality of solar panels are disposed near the post of the umbrella, as shown in FIG. 3. Even though Ma mentions that the lighting device is portable, the lighting fixtures along with the solar panels are too bulky to carry, let alone transferring them to other outdoor gears.
Therefore, there remains a need for a new and improved solar lighting system that is indeed portable, light weight, and easy to transfer to other outdoor gears to overcome the problems stated above.